Targus Travel-Ease Noise Cancellation Headphones

If you're among the many who want Bose's QuietComfort 2 noise-cancelling headphones but think $300 is too much to pay for them, something like Targus' $70 Travel-Ease Noise Cancellation Headphones are probably going to catch your eye. While not a true knock-off of the QC2, their design has certainly been inspired by that popular and well-advertised model, though these Targus headphones' noise-cancellation circuitry is housed in an in-line dongle rather than inside the ear-cup, which makes them a closer match to Bose's original QuietComfort noise-cancelling headphones.

Like the Bose headphones, the Targus Travel-Ease Noise Cancellation Headphones feature an over-the-ear (circumaural) design and soft, cushioned earpieces that effectively seal off your ears from the noisy environment. The Targus headphones offer the same fold-flat design of the QuietComfort 2s and come with a cloth carrying case and a two-prong adapter for plane travel. Because the noise-cancellation circuitry is part of the headphone cord (the dongle incorporates a battery bay for a single AA battery), you can't detach the headphone's cord and use the headphones to simply hush noise sans music--say, while you're riding on your lawnmower--without the hassle of dangling cables. However, the cord is nice and thick, and the Targus headphones have one key feature that's missing from the Bose headphones: a push-to-hear button on the in-line dongle.

The push-to-hear feature allows you to hear noise outside the headphones when you have them on (there's a mic built into the dongle). If you're on a plane, this feature would obviously come in handy if you were watching a movie and were approached by a flight attendant for a drink order. Click the PTH button, place your order, then go right back to the movie. Alternatively, you could turn down the sound using the in-line volume control, but the flight attendant's voice would be muted by the noise-cancellation.